Google: Microsoft’s Android claims ‘threaten innovation’

Google itself hasn’t yet been named as a defendant in any of Microsoft’s patent litigation over Android, but the search giant obviously has a vested interest in the case as the company behind the mobile operating system. Now Google is speaking out against Microsoft’s actions.

“Sweeping software patent claims like Microsoft’s threaten innovation,” the company said in a statement this morning. “While we are not a party to this lawsuit, we stand behind the Android platform and the partners who have helped us to develop it.”

“The Android platform infringes a number of Microsoft’s patents, and companies manufacturing and shipping Android devices must respect our intellectual property rights,” said Horacio Gutierrez, Microsoft corporate vice president and deputy general counsel, in a statement announcing the suit. “Other vendors, including HTC, a market leader in Android smartphones, have taken a license under this program, and we have tried for over a year to reach licensing agreements with Barnes & Noble, Foxconn and Inventec.”

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Comments

Anonymous

Innovation for Google = steal intellectual property

Bob

If Google is worried about the impact on innovation, they should indemnify OEMs who adopt Android. Then they could make themselves a party to any Android-related lawsuit and defend their IP directly. Why aren’t they? Could it be that they know they can’t?

We now have claims against Android from Oracle, Microsoft, Apple, and others. Google needs to either step up or shut up.